AT COLORADO: 2011 (Sr.)—He played in 12 games, starting 10 at the jack outside linebacker position; he suffered a stinger in practice on October 4 and managed to play through the pain against Stanford, but he sat out the Washington contest and came off the bench the next two games (Oregon, Arizona State) until he was fully healed. He earned honorable mention All-Pac 12 honors from the league coaches (third-team by Phil Steele’s College Football and collegesportsmadness.com), along with garnering first-team All-Colorado honors from the state’s NFF Chapter; ESPN.com named him to its All-Pac 12 Underrated Team. He was named by the coaching staff as the co-recipient of the Dave Jones Award (with DT Will Pericak) as CU’s most outstanding defensive player. He recorded 31 tackles (24 solo) on the season, and led the team for a second straight year in quarterback sacks, logging eight on the season (his 15 career sacks tied him for 12th all-time at Colorado). He also had seven quarterback hurries (second on the team, and four of which came against California), with three third down stops, two tackles for zero and a pass broken up; he added a knockdown block on special teams duty. His 10 tackles for loss were also a team best, and when adding his two zero stops, 50 percent of his solo stops were behind or at the line of scrimmage. He had a season and career-high six tackles in the opener at Hawaii, which included a sack, and also logged five tackles against USC (with a sack). He had one multiple-sack game when he registered two at Ohio State. He missed the last week of spring practice with a sprained ankle. Phil Steele’s College Football placed him on its preseason third-team All-Pac 12 squad.

2010 (Jr.)—He earned second-team All-Big 12 honors from the Associated Press, with the league coaches selecting him to their honorable mention squad; the state’s chapter of the NFF/College Hall of Fame tabbed him as second-team All-Colorado. He played in 11 games, including nine starts; he suffered an ankle sprain early in the Baylor game (after playing just nine snaps), and missed the remainder of that game as well as the Texas Tech game the following week; his being out dealt a severe blow to CU’s defensive efforts, particularly the pass rush, as the Buffs lost both games by a combined nine points. He eased back into the lineup for the next two games and returned to full health and started the three games of the year. For the year, in 380 plays from scrimmage, he recorded 24 tackles, 18 solo, with one-third of those stops going for tackles for loss (8), including a team-high seven quarterback sacks, which were the fifth-most in the Big 12 Conference and tied him for 50th nationally. He also had a team-best eight third down stops, along with a forced fumble, a pass broken up and his first career interception (the latter at Missouri, when he also had two tackles including a sack to earn CU’s Male Athlete of the Week honor). He had a career-high five tackles against Kansas State (all solo, including three quarterback sacks for 20 yards in losses and two third down stops), matched it with five in the season finale at Nebraska, and had three solo versus Georgia: all third down stops with two huge sacks for 17 yards. He had two tackles, including a sack, in the three main spring scrimmages as he continued to learn the nuances of his new position (defensive end, after switching from inside linebacker midway during the 2009 season). In spring conditioning tests, he had the best pro agility time (4.18) of all the defensive linemen.

2009 (Soph.)—He played in all 12 games, mostly on special teams, but did get into six games on defense where he played 71 snaps. He switched positions midway through the year, moving from inside linebacker to defensive end where he played the remainder of the season. He recorded three tackles, two solo, with a quarterback chasedown (near-sack). He earned four special teams points, with an assistant tackle, two knockdown blocks on return units and a wedge break.

2008 (Fr.-RS)—He saw action in all 12 games on special teams and appeared in one on defense (two snaps from scrimmage versus Texas). He earned five special team points on the season, on the strength of three tackles (two solo, one inside-the-20) and a for a pressure that altered the course of an opponent punt. He was the special teams scout team player of the week for the Kansas State game. He moved inside from outside linebacker for spring drills. He missed most of springs practice due to neck injury he suffered early in drills.

2007 (Fr.)—Redshirted; he practiced primarily at outside linebacker the entire fall. The coaches selected him as the scout team defense player of the week for the Texas Tech game. He enrolled at Colorado in January and participated in spring practices with the team.

HIGH SCHOOL—A three-year letterman, he was named second-team All-Broward County and was a team captain his senior year. Playing linebacker on defense in a 4-4 scheme, he had 100 tackles, including 10 for losses and one quarterback sack, two fumble recoveries and seven passes broken up. He played a limited role on offense, catching five passes for 60 yards and a touchdown at wide receiver. Playing defensive end as a junior he was an honorable mention All-Broward County selection, when he made 40 tackles (six sacks) and four passes broken up; he also played a blocking fullback on offense. As a sophomore he was mostly a back up at defensive end making 10 tackles and grabbing an interception. His top games came in his senior season: against Ft. Lauderdale, he made 15 tackles in a 28-6 win. In a loss against Cyprus Bay, he made 10 tackles and had four catches for 40 yards. Under head coach Adam Ratkevich, Northeast was 11-16 during Hartigan’s three years, including 5-5 his senior season. ACADEMICS—He earned his B.A. degree in Sociology in December 2010, and added a second major in Ethnic Studies in December 2011. He owned a 3.0 grade point average in high school.

PERSONAL—He is a native of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. His father, Sterling Palmer, was a linebacker/defensive end for Florida State (1989-92), and was a fourth round draft choice (101st player overall) by the Washington Redskins; he spent three seasons with the Redskins (1993-96). Hobbies include pick-up basketball games and listening to music. He also enjoys fixing up cars and taking his ’95 Mercury Grand Marquis to car shows like the East Coast Ryders. He aspires to play in the NFL, but when his football career is finished he would like to start a kennel and breed show dogs as well as rescue others from being euthanized.